


Edge of the Universe

by RogerrrrRogerrrr



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Mistaken Identity, No Beta, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Reader Insert, Slow Burn, This Is The Way, did I mention slow burn?, keep the helmet on
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-13
Updated: 2020-12-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:08:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28055151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RogerrrrRogerrrr/pseuds/RogerrrrRogerrrr
Summary: A classic case of mistaken identity... Twice removed.You are a seemingly normal girl attempting to find passage off of the Urban planet of Alsakan, but there is more to you than meets the eye. After you are robbed and left stranded on the planet, all hope of escaping Alsakan seems lost, but when a strange and dangerous man in shining armor asks you for information (that you don't exactly have), you use it as leverage of your own. Now all you have to do is convince this "Mando" that you have the information he needs, while also keeping the deadly secret of your true identity from being discovered...
Relationships: Din Djarin/Reader, Din Djarin/You, Mando/reader, Mando/you, The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV)/Reader, The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV)/You
Comments: 1
Kudos: 32





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome!
> 
> This is going to be a multi-chapter Din Djarin/Reader story that I hope you will enjoy!
> 
> Updates will go up every Thursday, and I'm not entirely sure on the chapter count right now (I'm thinking somewhere between 15-20, but who knows!). If you enjoy this chapter, feel free to leave a comment or a kudos, and keep an eye out for updates and other pieces of writing!
> 
> Disclaimer: This work does not have a beta, so all mistakes are my own. Also, I do not own any of the Star Wars franchise or any of its characters.
> 
> I hope you enjoy, and thanks for reading!
> 
> -RogerrrrRogerrrr

“If you want passage on my ship you’ll need to do better than that.”

The green skinned male Rodian sneered at you as you held out the fistful of precious jewels. His eyes looked you up and down with disdain once more before he scoffed and turned back to his drink at the bar. You stood beside him, completely stunned as your face burned with mortification. All of your carefully laid plans seemed to disintegrate right in front of you. Everything that you had done to get you to this moment was wasted entirely if you couldn’t even convince a smuggler to get you off the planet.

“Please, this is all I have,” your voice was raw coming out of your throat. Tears threatened to spill, but you held it together. The last thing you needed was to look even more like a damsel in distress. 

The Rodian closed his eyes and sighed, as if you were asking him to move the galaxy instead of a simple ride to the next system. He leaned back in his seat and downed the vibrant purple liquid in the stout glass the bartender had given him. With another put upon sigh, the Rodian turned to look back at you, before glancing at the glittering jewels in your palm.

“I’ll take you no further than our first stop on Corelia,” the Rodian said, his tone made sure that you understood that this was an enormous setback for him. However, all you could feel was relief coursing through your veins.

“Yes, yes of course!” You said, nodding enthusiastically. The complete relief that all of your careful planning would not be laid to waste made you want to scream. 

Around you, the rest of the patrons in the seedy lower level bar continued about their own business. Completely oblivious that your life had just been completely changed.

“We leave in two hours. Bay 713, on level 2,648. Don’t be late,” the Rodian glared. You nodded again and turned to walk away, giddy with the rush of freedom that you had been guaranteed. A firm grip on your shoulder yanked you back and turned you back around to face the Rodian. The green skinned male held out his other hand under your nose.

“Payment is given upfront, or else there is no deal,” The Rodian said. Something settled in your stomach that told you this was a bad idea. A blaring alarm going off through your mind that warned you of the Rodian’s words. However all you could think of what it would feel like to look down from the stars and see your home planet Alsakan shrinking into the distance.

You glanced down at the small pile in your hand of deep indigo jewels strung along a glittering silver chain. They felt heavy in your palm, as though they might pull you down into the center of the planet… You wondered if it was maybe just the weight of your guilt. 

“I don’t have all day. Deal or no deal?” The Rodian snapped and you jumped as you were brought back from the edge of your buried memories. You looked back up at the Rodian’s large, glinting eyes and felt your head nodding. Slowly you reached out and overturned your palm, watching the jewels fall into the Rodian’s green tinted hand. In the blink of an eye, they were snatched away from view, the Rodian stuffing them into a small bag that hung around his waist.

“See you at take off,” the Rodian said as he stood up in a rush and pushed by you. For a long moment you stood still amongst the humid bodies of the other bar patrons. The bass of the music flowed over you, and the constant chatter filled your head until no other thoughts could linger. You turned your hand back over, with the palm facing upward and stared at the empty space where the indigo jewels had sat.

“Either you’re here to order something, or get out!” growled an unfriendly voice, startling you once more into looking up and seeing the bartender (an alarmingly large Mon Calamari) glaring at you.

“Right, sorry,” You mutter and start making your way back out of the seedy bar. 

Once you were outside, you still felt as though you were being stifled. The air was different down in the lower levels. Not at all like what you were used to on the surface. 

Neon lights washed over your skin and despite the colors that were painted on the streets, the shadows seemed deeper and darker here. Danger was around every corner, and it was so strikingly different to the life of safety you had been sheltered in.

Pulling your hood further down you started making your way back towards the core where you’d take a taxi to the level that the Rodian had told you to meet on. 

Your heart was soaring with potential at the idea that your freedom was so close at hand, but as you walked through the dingy, dangerous streets of the lower levels of Alsakan, there was no denying that the weight of your guilt still sat heavily in your stomach.

><>><<><

Throughout your childhood, you never wanted for anything.

Surrounded by luxury and anything you could ever wish for. High in the clouds of Alsakan, looking down on the millions and billions of people that crowded the streets, without a single care in the world. 

It wasn’t until you had started to grow up that you realized your life for what it truly was.

A gilded cage.

No matter how many swaths of Nabooian silk, or glasses of Correllian wine, or rare jewels from Alderaan could hide the fact that you were imprisoned. The most company that you kept was the nanny droid that had followed you around since before you could remember. From an early age your Aunt had told you that the galaxy was full of people that would only harm you. Danger lurked around every corner and no one could be trusted. 

As a child you had hidden in your bed at night, wondering if your aunt was right. The galaxy was endless - the nanny droid had told you so. Stretching on forever and ever, which seemed completely impossible to believe. And yet you wondered if it was true that every single being could mean you harm.

Was your home, high in the clouds, truly the only safe place left?

It seemed possible, given that everything you had ever needed was within the transparisteel walls of your aunt’s apartment. However, the older you got, the more that the silence began to wear you down. Besides yourself and the nanny droid, your aunt would only spend short stretches of time in the gigantic and lavish apartment. It felt more like living with a ghost than an actual person. 

She would appear for short stretches of time, asking after your studies and wondering about what your new hobbies were. Different men and women would come to visit the apartment, though you were told very strictly to stay in your room during their visits. That never stopped you from peeking under the crack of the door and listening to the hushed voices in varying languages, speaking with your aunt. They would always adjourn to your aunt’s personal study, sealed off by heavy doors and would only emerge after several hours of being sequestered away. 

At dinner, you would sit opposite of your aunt and you felt the constant itch to ask who those people were and what they were doing. Curiosity made the words rise up in your throat, but the severe look on your aunt’s face was quick to quell your need for answers. You did not ask her, and she did not say anything in return. It wasn’t as though she would stay on Alsakan for very long anyway.

Two standard weeks was the longest amount of time your aunt had ever stayed in the apartment with you. Never once had she spoken about where else she went to during the enormous stretches of time between her stays on Alsakan. On the first and only occasion that you asked her about her travels, she had simply smiled, though it never reached her eyes, and had told you to not ask questions you didn’t need to know the answers too.

You never asked again.

Day in and day out, through every rotation you watched as the planet moved below you. Meanwhile, your life had become utterly stagnant. Everything that had once been glittering and golden in the apartment you had called home now only looked dull and served to remind you of everything you did not have.

Of course, that made you sound selfish and greedy. But it was rather the opposite - not that anyone would believe you if you told them. 

As you had grown, the only thing you wanted - _truly wanted_ \- was freedom.

You wanted to see the stars. Travel across the galaxy. See planets covered in oceans, and jungles, and endless deserts. Learn the languages of every being that you met. See the creatures that only existed in the holobooks on your data pad. You wanted to live - _truly live_ \- not just hide within the glittering, gilded walls of the place you grudgingly called home. 

It had all seemed like a fantasy. A dream so far from your grip that it was foolish and pointless to even think of it becoming a reality…

Until…

Until everything had changed.

Until everything you thought you had known, turned upside down.

Wrong.

Everything was wrong.

And you needed to leave.

You needed to _escape._

And so you did.

><>><<><

You could count on one hand the amount of times that you had left the apartment.

All of them had been in the company of your Aunt, as well as the nanny droid, and always four heavily armed, but silent guards that followed your every move. Each outing had also taken place well above the surface and the seedy lower levels. They consisted of leaving the apartment, getting on a private shuttle that had then taken you and your Aunt to another equally private destination. You had never encountered another being during any of the outings, and you had always felt as though you were the only person in the entire galaxy.

Now, as you made your way through the throngs of different beings that crowded the streets of Alsakan’s lower levels, you felt as though you were merely a speck amongst the infinite galaxy. No one knew your name. No one knew your face. No one cared about who you were.

It was everything you had wanted.

And it was the most terrifying thing you had ever experienced. 

You pulled your hood down over your face a bit more, the scarf obscuring the lower half of your face entirely so that only your eyes and forehead were visible. As you trudged through the many beings on the shuttle’s platform you were jostled back and forth. The concept of personal space was clearly something that wasn’t important in this place.

You glanced at the walls of the shuttle station, confirming that you had reached level 2,648, between the bays of 700-750. 

A strange feeling constricted around your heart in your chest. Something that felt like regret, though the promise of freedom still seemed to outweigh it. But still, as you walked, you wondered what would happen when the sun rose in the morning and the protocol droid realized that you were gone.

What if it contacted your aunt? What if it waited until she returned from wherever she was? What if it called the authorities and put out a search warrant? 

What if? What if? What if?

Too many questions. Too many possibilities.

You breathed deeply and settled yourself. Shoving aside the creeping feeling of regret and the heavy weight of guilt, you pushed forward. Heading towards Bay 713 and holding on too the courage that had gotten you this far. 

The further you made it, the more the crowd began to thin out. Thankfully, you didn’t have very far to go before you reached Bay 713. Hefting your small bag of belongings over your shoulder you picked up your pace. 

When you finally passed Bay 712, which had a severely dilapidated ship docked within it, you craned your neck around and saw Bay 713 beside it… 

With no ship docked…

You froze in place and stared at the empty docking bay. 

Every shred of hope you’d felt in your chest shriveled up and sunk into your gut. Not for the first time, you cursed your naivety and the fact that you truly had no idea what you were doing by yourself in the universe. You don’t know why you even thought this was a possibility. After spending your entire life thus far under the thumb of your Aunt you’d had the audacity to imagine you could be on your own?

“No, no, no, no,” You whimpered pathetically staring at the vast empty space of the hangar bay. You felt your bag slip from your shoulder and land on the ground with a soft thud. 

As hopeless tears began to drip from your eyes, you could have sworn that you saw a glimmer of indigo to your right. 

“You know Saz Kraak?” came a modulated voice out of nowhere. You jumped, startled at the sound and whipped around only to come face to face with yourself… Or rather, the reflection of yourself in a shiny chest plate. Your scarf still obscured your face for the most part, aside from your eyes which were red rimmed and filled with tears.

The man standing in front of you - at least you assumed it was a man based on the stature and the sound of the voice, even filtered through the modulator - was tall enough that you had to tip your head back to look into his face. And his face… Well, it was covered in an equally shiny helmet that matched the material of the rest of his armor. A large rifle looking weapon was slung over his back, and you could clearly see that the man was strapped with several other weapons. Briefly you wondered how many more there were that were hidden out of sight. 

“Excuse me?” You asked, realizing that you hadn’t spoken yet to the strange man. He was silent for a moment as he stared back at you, unmoving.

“Saz Kraak. Do you know him?” the man in armor asked again. 

Your confusion must have shown on your face, because the man made a noise that sounded like a sigh through his helmet and reached down to press a button on the armor covering his forearm. A holopicture appeared in the air, and a blue tinted image of the same Rodian man from the bar floated before you. 

“Oh!” You gasped, hope returning to your chest as you looked from the image to the armored man before you.

“Do you know him?” the man prompted again. If it wasn’t for the modulator you would have sworn that you could detect some annoyance in his tone.

“I mean… Yes?” You responded haltingly. If there was one lesson you had learned while growing up with your Aunt it was to never reveal the truth if a lie would benefit you more.

“Then you know where he is,” the man said simply. 

You stare at your warped reflection in the man’s helmet for a moment before glancing over your shoulder at the empty ship hangar. Several different scenarios flew through your head. Either you could lie and tell him that you did know the location of this… Saz Kraak… Or you told him the truth… 

“Yes, I do… Know, that is… Where he is… That is…” You said, turning back around to face the man in armor. As you stared up at the fully armored man you felt your palms began to sweat… Perhaps he knew you were lying? The silence was deafening, despite the fact that the constant clanging of metal and the thrum of ship engines was heavy in the air.

“Right… So?” the man finally said.

“So, what?” You replied. Another modulated sigh came from the helmet. Embarrassment made your cheeks heat beneath the fabric of your scarf, and you were glad of it’s cover so that it wasn’t too apparent to the stranger before you. 

“So where is he then?” the man asked. Yet again despite the way his baritone voice was filtered through the modulator, you could have sworn that the tone of his voice was sarcastic. 

At his question, you remembered another one of your Aunt’s lessons: always see what someone will give you before you give them anything at all.

“That depends,” You said, forcing yourself to sound far more confident than you truly felt in yourself, “I’d be willing to tell you… For a price that is.”

The man stared blankly at you and you did your best not to twitch in discomfort under the stoic reaction. 

“Name your price. I have plenty of credits,” the man said through his helmet. You tried not to show the breath of relief that you let out at the man’s words.

“Right… Well… I don’t exactly need the credits. I need a ride,” You replied.

“A ride…” the man repeated. You nodded your head in agreement.

“Yes,” You said, “In exchange for the location of Saz Kraak, I need passage. To Corelia.”

The man didn’t respond right away, and again you felt awkward in the silence between you.

“You. Are going to Corelia. You?” the man asked.

Again you were able to distinguish the sound of disbelief in the man’s words through the modulator. Feeling offended that this stranger thought he knew anything about you made you stand up straighter and glare at the man.

“Right, well if you’re going to be rude, I’ll just find passage with someone else,” You replied with a shrug, reaching down for your bag that had dropped to the floor, “And you are _more_ than welcome to find someone with the knowledge of where Saz Kraak is… Now, have a good day.”

Turning around, you felt your heart racing in your chest as you started to walk away from the strange man in armor, praying that you hadn’t just blown your only chance of getting off the planet. After almost a dozen steps, you felt your stomach begin to sink, knowing that the man had absolutely called your bluff and that all hope was lost for you to ever leave Alsakan.

“Alright. I’ll do it,” called the even, modulated tone.

You stopped moving and closed your eyes, breathing out with pure relief. Slowly you turned around and saw the man still standing where you’d left him, several feet away. Not intending to tempt fate (or your luck), for a second time, you nodded your head and walked back towards the man.

“So we have a deal then? You bring me to Corelia and I tell you where Saz Kraak is,” You asked. The man in armor nodded his head slowly in reply and you held out your hand. He looked at it for a moment, before he slowly lifted his own gloved one and gently gripped your hand. His own palm dwarfed yours and the heat from his body seeped through the material of his glove, leaving your hand warm even after he let it go once more.

“Let’s go,” the man said and turned away from you, walking back through the hangar. 

You cast a glance over your shoulder around the mostly empty hangar, sure as anything that your Aunt or someone worse might appear from the shadows to stop you at any moment. But nothing happened, and the only noises were the deep hum of engines and the clanging of metal.

“Keep up!” called the modulated voice, and you jolted back into movement. You hitched your bag higher on your shoulder and started after the man. 

You knew that you would have to plan the next phase of your deception as soon as possible, and you weren’t entirely sure how much time you had. In theory, Corelia was only five systems away, but you had never traveled through hyperspace and the mechanics of time bending in wormholes had always confused you.

You bit at your lips, torn between wondering just how you were going to get yourself out of this one, and relief at the prospect of actually leaving the planet. It wasn’t until you realized that the armored man was walking up the ramp of the dilapidated ship you had glimpsed on your way to the hangar. You stopped walking and stared in disbelief at the hunk of scrap metal and rusted bolts. It was light years away from the shiny, new star ships that your Aunt had commissioned on the very few times you had ever left the apartment. 

The armored man realized that you had stopped and he turned to look at you over his shoulder.

“It’s not much, but it’ll get you to Corelia,” the man said.

“If it’ll even get off the ground,” You mumbled, walking slowly up the rusted ramp. 

“I heard that,” the man replied. 

Your cheeks burned under the cover of your scarf, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Once you were inside you followed the armored man as he climbed a ladder into the cockpit, and found yourself in the tiny cabin. The man sat himself in the pilot seat and you set your bag down beside the passenger seat as you sat down as well. You watched as the man, without preamble, began the pre-flight check and began flipping switches and turning dials. It was fascinating to you, but you had no idea what any of them actually did.

“Buckle up… Leaving atmo can get rough in this thing,” the man said simply. Your eyes widened as the hum of the engine kicked on and vibrated your entire seat. You could feel it deep in your bones and your hands scrambled to secure the seat belt harness over yourself. 

You barely had time to get settled before you felt the slight pull of gravity as the ship lifted off of the platform and began to fly out of the hangar. Your heart leapt into your throat as the true realization that you were leaving settled over you. Through the windshield of the ship you watched as the bright lights and busy streets of Alsakan zoomed past. The higher you rose into the sky, the more you felt your heart squeeze tightly in your chest.

You knew that you had done the right thing. 

You knew that you had to leave.

You just hadn’t known how hard it truly would be to watch everything you’d ever known sink into the distance.

By the time the ship had reached the atmosphere, it was shaking in a very concerning way. You cut your eyes to the strange man driving the ship, and while it felt as though the walls of the ship might vibrate apart entirely, his hands remained steady on the steering and he looked calm… Or at least as calm as you could make out without actually seeing his face.

“Leaving atmo in three… two…” 

_One._

A low, subsonic boom rippled through the ship, and you clenched your eyes shut as the planet fell away entirely. After a moment, the shivering of the ship became nothing more than a tremble, and the sound of the engine dulled to a quiet hum. With a shaky inhale you opened your eyes, only for your breath to be stolen entirely.

Space stretched out before you.

The stars glimmering like tiny jewels on a swath of endless black velvet. 

It was _beautiful._

“You get used to it,” said the man’s modulated voice and you blushed to realize that you had said those words out loud.

“Uh, right of course… So just how far away is Corelia?” You cleared your throat and asked quietly. You knew that it sounded a bit suspicious to ask, but if the armored man picked up on anything, he didn’t say. Of course, he didn’t really strike you as the talkative type either. 

“Three days of hyperspace travel,” the man replied. You nodded and shifted in your seat. The man continued to push buttons and you watched curiously.

“Right, well… If we’re going to be together for that long, we might as well get to know each other,” You said and told him your name, “What should I call you?” 

The man went silent. 

You shifted again, uncomfortable and imagining that you had overstepped some kind of boundary… Did other people not exchange their names after meeting each other? Was this some kind of test? Did he already know who you were?

The possibilities mounted ever higher in your mind and you began to panic.

“Mando,” said the voice.

“What?” You choked out, brought out of your spiral of panic. The man didn’t bother to look over at you, though you stared at him intently.

“Most people call me Mando,” he said again.

 _Mando._ You thought to yourself.

_What an odd kind of name._

You opened your mouth to ask if it was some kind of nickname, when suddenly, Mando pushed forward on a silver lever, and the stars began to blur across the windshield. The ship was shot directly into hyperspace, and any words you might have said were lost as the true weight of your actions settled over your shoulders.

You had actually done it.

You were safe.

The question was… How long would you _remain_ safe?

More importantly… How long would it be before they came after you?


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! 
> 
> I'm happy that people are enjoying the premise of the story and have left some kudos! As a writer it always motivates me to continue creating stories and putting out my best work for people, knowing that they appreciate it!
> 
> If you enjoy this second chapter, consider leaving a kudo or a comment and let me know what you think so far!
> 
> Disclaimer: This work does not have a beta, and any mistakes are my own. I also don't own any part of the Star Wars Franchise or any of its characters.
> 
> Happy reading & Enjoy the chapter!
> 
> -RogerrrrRogerrrr

The voices sounded as if they were coming from a different room.

Muffled. Distant. One higher pitched and clearly female and other more difficult to distinguish.

You heard your name being mentioned and you leaned forward, attempting to catch a bit more of the conversation. Suspended and weightless, daring not even to breathe as you listened, pressed up against a wall of frigid metal.

“Do not presume to tell me what is best for her,” said the female voice. The sound of it itched something deep in the back of your mind. Something important that you could not put your finger on.

“Then you accept that her failure will be on your head. Her blood is on your hands,” said the second voice. Deeper than the first, but more distant. Almost as if it was a whisper on the wind, and not a true voice. Something that slipped away like smoke before you could pin it down.

“How  _ dare _ you. You speak as though you were not the one to advise me on this course of action!” the female voice raged. You flinched backwards at the sound of violence in the tone. 

“And you speak as someone who has won a bet before their fathier has crossed the finish line. You bred her for this purpose, and yet you are still blinded by what you do not have. You have been consumed by greed, and your hold on everything has begun to slip because of it,” said the second voice. Chastising and even more dangerous than the first voice. 

Breathing out shakily you pressed yourself even closer to the freezing metal beneath your ear. Hoping for a shred of context. Just a few more words… Just a bit more… But now the words began to waver. Your cheek began to sting with how hard you pressed yourself against the metal, but it did not make a difference. The words drifted in and out of clarity.

_ “You are not to - any lecture would be - I will decide what she - and together we will - not until she dies” _

_ “ - More a fool than I - your audacity speaks for - the time is coming - protection is not guaranteed -” _

_ “She will die when I -” _

_ “Pray you do what is - before they come for her -” _

_ “It will be done.” _

><>><<><

With a gasp you are wrenched from the shadowed world of your dream. 

The voices echo through your head, though they begin to fade almost immediately. Slipping away just as quickly as any remnant of sleep had been snatched away. You were slumped down in the unforgiving passenger seat and through the windshield, space continued to slide by. Everything was quiet except for the wet, heaving breaths that wracked your lungs as you attempted to calm down. The sweat on your temples and the back of your neck made the fabric of your scarf stick to your skin. You wanted to rip it off of your head, but one glance at the occupied pilot’s seat made you rethink the action.

The armored stranger… this “Mando'' was sitting ramrod straight in the pilot’s chair. His helmet still securely in place as he faced forward. As though he was staring out into space. Unlike your scarf where he was able to see only your eyes, you could not tell if he was awake. His shoulders barely moved with each of his slip inhales and for a brief moment your eyes caught on the width of his shoulders…

Shaking your head you looked away and became more aware of the building pressure in your bladder. You didn’t want to wake Mando to ask, and so you slowly and silently undid the harness belt across your body. The small click of the mechanism releasing seemed to echo in the cockpit and you froze, your eyes flicked back to Mando, who still hadn’t even shifted. You reached up and adjusted the scarf on your head, ensuring that it was still covering you well enough. Despite the fact that you had only worn it to conceal your identity on Alsakan, there was still uncertainty in removing it. Mando had not removed his own helmet, so why should you remove your own face covering?

You stood from your seat and crept quietly towards the ladder that led down from the cockpit. Another trick you had picked up after years of living with your Aunt. During her scarce visits, you learned quickly that it was better to move unseen than to draw unwanted attention to yourself. Your escape was proof enough that you had gotten good at it.

Silently you climbed down the ladder from the cockpit and strained your eyes to see around the darkened cargo hold. You knew that there had to be a fresher somewhere on board. You couldn’t imagine any spacecraft designed to travel through hyperspace without one. Reaching out with one hand, you found the side of the ship, slowly feeling along the edges of the shivering durasteel wall for an edge that could lead to the fresher door. 

Finally you felt a lip in the metal that led to a smooth handle. With a sigh of relief you pushed on the handle and dragged the metal door open. The room was just as dark as the cargo hold and you fumbled on the wall for some kind of light switch. Feeling around for it, you were beginning to grow more frustrated when suddenly, a firm grip on your shoulder whirled you around, and you were thrown up against the wall of the ship. 

You yelped in surprise, feeling the firm grip shift from your shoulder to your throat. It didn’t apply any pressure, but the gloved hand was wide enough to cover the front of your neck entirely. 

Eyes wide in surprise and fear, you could barely see the subtle glint of Mando’s helmet in the darkness of the cargo hold. Your breath was coming in gasps as you were held by the neck against the cold durasteel of the ship’s walls.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Mando demanded harshly. Through his modulator you could almost sense panic in his voice. 

“Just… Just looking for the… the fresher,” You squeaked. You were hyper aware of Mando’s bulk standing before you. You could barely see him standing before you, since the cargo hold was nearly pitch black and the only faint light was from the open hatch to the cockpit. He was like a black mass before you, broad and powerful. Something tightened in your stomach at the thought. The memory of looking at his broad shoulders flashed through your mind as you focused on the flickering light from the streaking stars on his helmet. 

Mando still hadn’t responded to your answer. As if he was waiting for you to speak again. As if he thought you were lying to him… But what else would you possibly be looking for on a stranger’s ship?

“Over here,” Mando finally said. His hand eased off of your throat and your hand immediately flew up to the same spot it had covered. The heat from his gloved hand clung to your skin and made the chilled air of the cargo hold seem even colder. Unconsciously you brought your arms up to wrap around your body and you heart the soft shuffle of booted feet crossing the cargo hold. It was quiet for another moment, and then the brilliant shine of light scorched your retinas. 

“A little warning would be nice,” You grumbled, squinting into the bright light that now flooded the hold. Mando’s body was silhouetted by the light and his armor glinted dangerously. You swallowed thickly, trying not to feel like a specimen under examination as Mando stared back at you - at least from what you could tell with that damned helmet on. You stepped towards the doorway of light, leading to the fresher. You didn’t glance at Mando again as he moved aside so that you could go in. And you definitely didn’t breathe a sigh of relief when the fresher door was finally closed between the two of you and you had engaged the lock.

The cramped, fluorescent-lit space was a far cry from the luxurious fresher you’d had in your rooms at the apartment. With it’s inlaid bathtub, made of smoky gray stone imported from Stewjon and it’s chandelier that dripped with crystals and made golden light glimmer around the room. There was barely enough room in this fresher for you to turn in a circle without bumping into anything.

The shower looked functional, if not ridiculously small, and everything seemed to be clean… Thank the stars. 

It wasn’t as though you were expecting the same standard of living that you had grown up with. Logically you knew that the wealth your Aunt had was not a common thing, even throughout the galaxy. It had been that stifling luxury that had discomfited you the most when you had finally grown enough to understand it could not have been earned by any kind of ethical method… But still… Looking around the tiny, dingy fresher, you were confronted with the fact that you were no longer surrounded by the comforts you had known. You likely never would be again.

You sighed again, pushing those depressing thoughts from your head and finally relieved yourself. Once you were standing again in front of the small metal sink, you glanced up from your soap covered hands and into the oval shaped, dented mirror hanging on the wall. The mirror wasn’t even close to being polished, but the reflection of your eyes, peaking out of your scarf still stared back at you.

You looked…  _ sad. _

You knew deep down that you had done the right thing. You knew without a shadow of doubt that you couldn’t have stayed at the apartment any longer. But there was still the ache in your chest at the constant reminder that you had also left behind all the parts of your life that you had loved.

The holobooks in the library. Your favorite blanket made of Nabooian silk. The dress you had been given for your birthday, which had stolen your breath away for how beautiful it was. Even the nanny droid, who had been your constant companion. Everything was gone.

All you had left was the clothes on your back and the few meager belongings that you had managed to fit into your bag. 

And you looked sad… and tired.

You lifted a hand and tugged the scarf off of your head in one sharp movement, baring your face to the fluorescent light of the fresher and reflected back at you in the dented mirror. 

Once it had been the face of an unknown girl.

Now, it was the face of a traitor.

><>><<><

Once you had finally wrapped your scarf around your face once more, you made your way out of the fresher, unsurprised to find that Mando had left his spot outside the door. Before you turned the light out in the fresher, you glanced around the cargo space once more, memorizing the path to the ladder that led to the cockpit. 

Looking around the space, you could see the door that Mando had stopped you from entering into before. You briefly wondered what was behind it, but it passed quickly enough. You had enough of your own secrets to worry about, nevermind someone else’s.

You flicked the light off and only managed to stumble twice as you made your way blindly to the ladder. Feeling the rungs with your hands you hoisted yourself up and entered the cockpit again. Mando was back in the pilot’s chair and you settled quietly back into the passenger seat.

Beyond the transparisteel, the galaxy still drifted by and it was utterly silent in the cabin aside from the soft beeping that was coming from one of the panels on the dashboard. You swore you could hear your own heartbeat and you wondered if you should say something to Mando just to fill the silence. Of course it was still difficult to tell if he was sleeping or just simply staring straight ahead as he piloted the ship through hyperspace.

“We need to make a stop,” Mando said suddenly. You furrowed your brow beneath your scarf and looked at him expectantly, waiting for more of an explanation. When none seemed to be forthcoming you began to worry. Had he figured out who you were? Was he going back on your deal? Had he found the information he needed from someone else? Your thoughts were spinning and Mando continued to stay silent.

“Is there more you’d like to add to that? Or is that it?” You asked, digging deep for the courage to sound like you weren’t on the verge of a mental breakdown. Your hands shook and you quickly clenched them in the fabric of your tunic.

Mando glanced over his shoulder at you, and then quickly faced forward again.

“I’ll need to stop for fuel. I hadn’t anticipated a trip to Corelia. Nevarro is close. We’ll stop there,” Mando replied. Despite the fact that his words made sense, you still couldn’t shake the feeling of unease in your chest. What if he was lying? You knew nothing of space travel, in practice at least - the holobooks in the library couldn’t quite translate the concept through words well enough. What if Mando was heading right back to Alsakan and you were left stranded again?

“I made a deal with you. I will not go back on my word,” Mando said, cutting through your spiraling thoughts. You stared at the side of his helmet, the light of the stars glinting off the shining metal. Slowly your eyes drifted downward for just a moment, settling on the width of his shoulders once again. You shifted in your seat and nearly flinched when Mando turned in his seat almost fully to look back at you.

Unlike the times before where you had been unsure if Mando had been looking at you or not, now it was made crystal clear that his full attention was on you.

“I keep my word,” Mando said simply. Yet, despite the simplicity of the statement, the steel resolve that you clearly heard in his voice was undeniable. It settled something deeper inside of you than just the panic that was blocking your throat. It was like someone had draped your favorite Nabooian silk blanket around your shoulders and the warmth of it had seeped into your bones.

“I believe you,” You replied honestly. Mando clearly heard it as well, but he simply nodded his head once and then turned back to face the front of the ship.

“A few more minutes, and then we drop into the Nevarro system,” Mando said, pushing a few buttons on the dashboard. You nodded in response to his words, even though he wasn’t looking at you still.

The warmth from his words still hadn’t left you. It was like an anchor that was weighing down all of the anxious thoughts that had been rattling around inside of your head. You looked out at the galaxy that slipped by the ship in an endless stream of white. For a moment you flicked your gaze back towards Mando, where he was still doing something with the controls.

His arm created a long line, and you followed it from the shining pauldrons set upon wide shoulders, to the curve of his bicep that could barely be seen under the dark material of his shirt. Down over the armor that covered his thick forearm and to his gloved hand… The same hand that had pressed you by the throat to the wall of the ship. 

A sudden, shrill beeping filled the cabin and you were jerked out of your thoughts. You could feel your cheeks heating with a blush, and silently were thankful for the cover of your scarf once again. Mando flipped a few switches and the beeping stopped, but your heart still raced in your chest.

It was foolish to let those kinds of thoughts even enter your head. All you were getting from Mando was a ride to Corelia… And then he would demand the information on Saz Kraak that you didn’t have… Which could pose as a bit of a problem. 

And After that… Well, you hadn’t quite gotten that far. You still had time to figure everything out, but you needed to focus and stay on course.

There was absolutely no time for you to consider anything else.

Especially not how thick his bicep appeared or the width of his shoulders under his armor… And definitely not how the steady, honest sound of his voice made you feel utterly safe, despite the fact that he was still a virtual stranger… And you absolutely could not even  _ think  _ of considering what his face might truly look like under that helmet that he still had not removed… 

Mando reached forward and settled his hand over one of the silver levers on the control dashboard, the leather creaking as he closed his fingers around it. He leaned forward, and you watched as his legs spread just a bit more, his feet planted solidly on the ground.

You swallowed thickly and looked back up the line of his body until it settled on the shining silver of his helmet. Something quickened in your chest and a pool of heat settled in your belly. Your head felt a little bit light, and you realized in that moment that you were completely  _ fucked. _

“Prepare for drop,” Mando said.

As you scrambled to buckle the passenger harness around your body, with your eyes still riveted to Mando, you tried to prepare yourself for something much more devastating than a simple drop out of hyperspace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
> If you enjoyed it, consider leaving a kudo or a comment letting me know what you think!
> 
> The next update will be posted on 12/24/20
> 
> -RogerrrrRogerrrr


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